Frozen food has enjoyed another successful year of growth, according to Kantar Worldpanel.

The figures, which looked at the 52 weeks ending December 6 2015, show the total retail frozen food market is now worth £5.8bn.

The figures highlight solid growth in the frozen confectionery and ready meals categories, with an increase of 6.4% and 2.1% year-on-year (yoy) respectively. Another strong performing category was frozen pizza, which also saw a value increase of 1.8% yoy.

British Frozen Food Federation (BFFF) chief executive Brian Young said: “The three frozen food categories which have seen significant increase in value all highlight the continued trend of consumers seeking great-tasting, convenience food.”

The release of the data shows there is a considerable opportunity for frozen food producers and manufacturers to capitalise on the growing number of consumers looking for convenience food by creating more innovative frozen food products.

And BFFF is continuing its on-going consumer frozen food campaign with the relaunch of its customer-facing website, Cool Cookery.

Mr Young added: “The UK’s frozen food market is steadily growing as consumers continue to demand convenient, high quality food.

“With time becoming more of a precious commodity, consumers are increasingly looking for ingredients and meal ideas that offer nutritious, great value, time saving options.

“The ever expanding range of high quality frozen food products – from frozen risottos, herbs and vegetables to rice, baked potatoes, artisan breads and patisserie – enables consumers to save time in the kitchen, while still providing great tasting, nutritional food.”

Mr Young concluded: “Looking forward, it is imperative that frozen food producers, manufacturers and brands ensure that the benefits of their products are showcased to consumers. Convenience is a trend which shows no signs of going away, and by producing innovative frozen food products which tap into this, the frozen food industry could reap significant rewards.”